Is fatigue resistance under-appreciated? - The GCN Show

Last weekend, Si Richardson went head to head in a fitness challenge against top CrossFit athlete, Zak George, otherwise known as Silverback. The less said about how Si performed in push-ups, the better, but it did raise the matter of fatigue resistance.

It is fair to say that in the showdown, Silverback had a greater fatigue resistance than Si, despite our man's long hours spent in the saddle filming all manner of videos for the GCN YouTube channels. It prompted Si to recall an interesting article he recently read on Outside.

Published in May and written by Alex Hutchinson, the article outlines inadequacies of the current laboratory testing to discover rising stars in endurance sports. This failure is particularly apparent in endurance running, as discussed by Si and Dan Lloyd in this week's GCN Show.

The three industry-standard measurements in endurance running are an athlete's Vo2 Max, lactate threshold and running economy, with all three being calculated to estimate an expected marathon time. As you will note, missing from this equation is fatigue resistance and Dan and Si think the asset is also undervalued in cycling circles.

To put it simply, athletes with better fatigue resistance do not see their physiological capabilities change as much over the course of a ride, as those who have lower abilities to resist fatigue. You can see why this will be an important factor for riders looking to win the Tour de France, for example.

You will have to check out the full GCN Show to hear about the Scandinavian study which has demonstrated that, but investigations have revealed that fatigue resistance is particularly important when athletes are participating in high-end efforts or sprinting. These high-end efforts can draw particular focus on those riders who deal with fatigue better than others and just two years ago, we could see this playing out on the roads of France.

At the 2022 Tour de France, Jumbo-Visma engaged in a strategy of to-and-fro attacks between their leaders Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard. The UAE Team Emirates leader Tadej Pogačar was forced into a chasing game and as a result of these high-end efforts, he was later exposed by Vingegaard and put to the sword by other riders such as Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers). It was clear, on that day, that Vingegaard had demonstrated greater fatigue resistance than Pogačar.

In the GCN Show, Dan and Si go into great depth on the subject and explore how athletes may look to improve their own fatigue resistance. Check out the video at the very top of this page to watch the full discussion.

Elsewhere in this week's show, we check in on the round-the-world attempt of Lael Wilcox, who is hoping to beat Jenny Graham self-supported record of 124 days. The bikepacking world record has stood for a while, but Wilcox has chosen a different route to Graham and will be avoiding Russia.

Remarkably, Lael will not be the only woman looking to conquer the record this summer, with former Indian footballer Vedangi Kulkarni also looking to do the same in July. Wilcox may be a household name in cycling circles, but Kulkarni is a fierce opponent in her own right, having already become the youngest woman to have cycled around the world when she was just 20.

Dan and Si have caught up with Graham to get her inside line on Wilcox's chances, so tune in to discover more.

Hacks and Bodges

As Dan and Si cast their judgement on this week's entries, remember that you can submit your photos for next time via our new uploader. Please make sure to include as much detail as possible.

Read more: Upload your cycling photos and be featured on our GCN shows

When the shoe fits

Our first entry this week comes from @injektergcn, who is feeling rather comfortable in their socks as they stand roadside fixing a puncture. Let us explain. injektergcn has sent us a picture of their set-up, in which they have removed their Specialized cycling shoes to protect the front forks of their bike.

Keeping the bike upright allows the bike to rest without fear of being scratched as the front wheel is removed and tended to. Using the bike's pedal for an extra sense of security seems wise, otherwise a gust of wind could result in a tumble that scratches the lever hoods or saddle. But what do you think? Would you be standing roadside in your socks whilst mending a puncture?

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A modern down-tube shifter

Ryanbrink has been in touch with us to share the rather unusual methods of their co-worker. We can't quite make our minds up on this one, but we will let them explain:

A coworker of mine rides 1x cyclocross, but also occasionally does some gravel races. For the climbs, he throws on an AXS rear derailleur and instead of messing with the shifters he’s used the accessory mounts on his down tube and a rubber strap to mount a shifter from his MTB. He’s got a dedicated wheel with cassette and a longer chain to finish up the quick conversion.

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A personal touch from marckbebe

GCN viewer marckbebe has shared an image of their bike computer mount, which not only holds a Hammerhead computer but also a 3D-printed galleon figure. The figure has been printed in wax and then given a wax casting which has then been used to cast a bronze final product.

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Tick, tock, goes the clock

The final entry this week comes from @jrjachnik who has repurposed a Hunt carbon rim. Taking pride and place on their wall, there are no numbers on this clock but it certainly has its own character. We're fans! Are you?

I cracked a 50mm carbon rim in a minor crash and had it replaced. Couldn't face throwing away an almost perfect rim, so made it into a clock. It's got cassette sprockets in the middle and a 3D-printed "hub" to lace the spokes and hold the clock mechanism in place.

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Coming up on the channel this week*

Wednesday 12 June: 6 things we learned from the World Gravel Series

Thursday 13 June: Here is how to choose the best bike for your commute

Friday 14 June: Does crank length really matter?

Saturday 15 June: Can David Millar beat his old time trial record?

Sunday 16 June: We tried to copy Wout van Aert's training and this is what happened

*All channel content is subject to change!

Did you know?
You can now listen to The GCN Show as a podcast. That means you can still get all the insight from the latest episode of the show without actually having to look at Dan and Si at all, if that's ever been an issue for you. Search for 'Global Cycling Network' on your chosen podcast provider.

For all things general news, check out this tab on the GCN website.